Bosch
Bosch is a streaming series by Amazon Studios, based on the Harry Bosch series of novels written by Michael Connelly. The original pilot episode was released through Amazon Instant Video and LOVEFiLM on 6 February 2014, while a revised version of the episode was released nearly a year later on 3 February 2015. According to a March 11th Variety article by Andrew Wallenstein, Bosch had been greenlit by Amazon Studios for a full season, along with The After, Mozart in the Jungle, and Transparent. On March 31st, the Los Angeles Times reported that Amazon had issued a press release announcing that all four dramas had indeed been picked up for full seasons, along with Gortimer Gibbon's Life on Normal Street and Wishenpoof! The complete first season of the series streamed on 13 February 2015; the introductory credit sequence features the song "Can't Let Go" by Caught a Ghost. On 18 March 2015, the series was renewed for a second season, which is set to debut on 11 March 2016. Development Background In 1995, Michael Connelly optioned the film rights to the character of Harry Bosch to Paramount Pictures. The studio failed to develop any projects based on the character, however, and in January of 2010, the 15-year option expired, giving Connelly a one-year window to buy back the rights by paying the studio for “all out-of-pocket costs, advances and payments” incurred, plus interest. In March of 2010, Connelly sued the studio in order to acquire an accurate accounting of how much Paramount had spent on development, and finally bought back the rights to his own character in October of 2010. In December of that year, Connelly told Deadline magazine that "Harry could have a life on TV." In December of 2011, Swedish television producer Henrik Bastin, having binge-read all of Connelly's novels with his pregnant wife during the Summer of 2006, finally arranged to meet with Connelly at the Standard Hotel for an hours-long breakfast, presenting the author with a casing from a rifle shell (in reference to Harry Bosch's tendency to collect a shell casing from the 21-gun salute performed at the funerals of police officers that he attends) and claiming that if he was allowed to produce a show about Bosch, "that's the kind of detail we'll have." Bastin also agreed to Connelly's stipulation that every shot of the series would be filmed in Los Angeles. Season One During the Summer of 2012, Connelly and Bastin met with writer/producer Eric Overmyer, who they quickly persuaded to become showrunner, and on 9 July 2012, Deadline announced that Connelly had "partnered with Fuse Entertainment (The Killing, The Good Guys) and writer-producer Eric Overmyer (HBO’s Treme) in hopes of finally bringing his Hieronymus “Harry” Bosch character to series TV." On 24 November 2012, OregonLive reported that Overmyer had completed the teleplay for "the first episode of the Harry Bosch television show," and that the script had been sent "out to studios and networks on Friday," November 23rd, with an eye "toward cable sensibilities." Connelly also discussed the possibility of producing the series in conjuction with Netflix, and said of the project: "We're talking about a 10 to 12 episode season that tracks one or two books. Our idea for the first season is to track City of Bones and part of Concrete Blonde. Concrete Blonde has a courtroom drama playing out as a B track in it, and we're taking that B track and adding it to City of Bones." On the topic of casting his titular character, Connelly told the Huffington Post on 20 December 2012: "I've watched House and I could very easily see Hugh Laurie in the role. ...I think there's an opportunity to find someone who's not known to the viewing public and that person can make this role theirs the way Laurie did with House. There are people out there -- people like Kyle Chandler, like Billy Burke -- people that physically look like the guy I've been writing about -- not exactly, but close to it." Casting began in June of 2013, at which time James Gandolfini expressed interest in playing the title character, though he eventually passed on the project. Connelly later suggested Titus Welliver for the role of Harry Bosch, having seen the actor play a military veteran suffering from PTSD in the pilot episode of Touch, and being drawn to "the look in his eyes" which spoke "of an interior life of a damaged man." Welliver was, at that time, in Hong Kong filming Transformers: Age of Extinction, but he ultimately arranged to meet for a casting session on the final day of casting, after which Connelly and Pieter Jan Brugge immediately agreed that Welliver embodied the character of Bosch. After developing a series bible for the show, Connelly and Bastin received a call from Joe Lewis at Amazon Studios, who requested to meet with them in order to request that they forego pitching the project to any other studios and agree to produce the series with Amazon. Connelly, who recognized that the majority of his books are sold through Amazon, immediately expressed interest in making a deal, though Bastin initially had some reservations until it became clear that Amazon would provide the resources for the series to be made exactly as he, Connelly, and Overmyer wanted. On 31 October 2013, Amazon Studios announced that it had greenlit Bosch for production. The hour-long pilot will star Titus Welliver as Harry Bosch, with Annie Wersching, Amy Price-Francis and Jamie Hector co-starring; Henrik Bastin of Fabrik Entertainment is producing and Jim McKay will direct. The first season will follow Bosch "as he pursues the killer of a 13-year-old boy while standing trial in federal court on accusations that he murdered a suspected serial killer in cold blood." On the casting of 52-year-old Welliver, Connelly said: "I can’t really imagine Harry as a young guy." According to Connelly, "a fair amount of changes" were made "to the world of Harry Bosch" "in making the shift from page to screen." In the series, Harry "is 47 years old and a veteran of the first Gulf War in 1991, where he was part of a Special Forces team that cleared tunnels. He has now been a police officer for twenty years with a one year exception when he re-upped with the Army after 9/11, as many LAPD officers did. He came back to the force after serving in Afghanistan and again encountering tunnel warfare." Connelly also indicated that "the first story/season" would incorporate elements from "a short story called 'Cielo Azul'." The pilot was filmed from November 4th through November 19th at several locations in and around Los Angeles, and aired on Amazon on 6 February 2014. On March 31st, the Los Angeles Times announced that the series had been picked up for a full season of ten episodes, and on May 6th, Connelly announced that "a great staff of writers and producers with credits ranging from The Sopranos to The Wire to Boardwalk Empire and Mad Men have signed on and we are in a month’s long brainstorming and writing period, which is the starting point for season one." Pre-production began in June of 2014, while production on new episodes began on August 11th. On August 14th, Connelly announced that elements of Echo Park would also be incorporated into the first season, having "decided to add the creepy world of killer Raynard Waits into the mix." Season Two On 18 March 2015, the Los Angeles Times reported that the series (along with Transparent, Alpha House, and Mozart in the Jungle) had been renewed for a second season, which "will draw primarily from Connelly's novel Trunk Music" while also including "elements of The Last Coyote and The Drop." Variety reported that the renewal resulted from the fact that the series "broke records with the biggest debut weekend of any original series from Amazon," and "has been the most-watched title on Prime Instant Video out of all TV shows and movies in the four weeks since the season one debut," indicating that the second season will feature Bosch investigating "the murder of a Hollywood producer who laundered money for the mafia" while pursuing "serial killer Chilton Hardy...from the Hollywood Hills down through L.A.’s gritty back streets." IGN reported that series stars Titus Welliver, Jamie Hector, Amy Aquino, Lance Reddick, and Sarah Clarke would be returning for the second season. On March 19th, Connelly confirmed in a Washington Post interview that Nate Tyler "is back in Season Two, and he and Harry have straightened it out." On March 25th, Deadline reported that Madison Lintz had "been upped to a series regular for Season 2," and that "her role will have a more prominent presence in the second season." On July 28th, Deadline reported that Brent Sexton had "booked a season-long recurring arc" as "Carl Nash, a former police detective who was shoved out of the department by internal affairs and who has a long history with Bosch." On July 16th, the series was nominated for the Outstanding Main Title Design award at the 67th Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards, along with Manhattan, American Horror Story: Freak Show, Daredevil, Halt and Catch Fire, and Olive Kitteridge; the award was won by Manhattan. Connelly announced on Facebook that filming for the second season began on July 30th. On August 5th, Deadline reported that Jeri Ryan had "booked a multi-episode arc" in the second season, portraying "Veronica Allen, a former stripper who married a prolific porn producer and now lives in luxury, turning a blind eye to her husband’s constant philandering." On the same day, Deadline also reported that Erika Alexander had "booked a season-long recurring arc," playing "Connie Irving, a college professor and Deputy Chief Irving’s wife who is concerned about furthering her husband’s career and keeping her police officer son safe," replacing Michelle Hurd, who had played the role in the first-season episode "High Low." On August 11th, scenes were filmed at the Los Angeles Times Building at 1st and Spring Streets in Los Angeles. On August 12th, scenes were filmed at the "print shed" of the Los Angeles Police Department's Criminalistics Laboratory. Also on August 12th, Nicholas Gonzalez posted a pair of Tweets that seemed to confirm that the actor had been cast to play LAPD detective Ignacio Ferras; two days earlier, Gonzalez had Tweeted that he had finished reading The Overlook, in which the character of Ferras first appeared. On August 24th, Annie Wersching released a photograph on Instagram of herself in a police uniform leaning against a squad car with the caption "Brasher's back baby!!!" On December 1st, Connelly announced on Facebook that filming on the second season had concluded. Season Three On April 1st, Connelly announced on Facebook "that season 3 of Bosch is a go," and that the third season will "adapt The Black Echo and elements of A Darkness More Than Night this time around." Promotion On 28 January 2014, two clips of the pilot were released on YouTube: "The Bone Run," which runs 49 seconds in length, and "The Smoke Break," which runs 1:32 in length. On February 1st, a clip entitled "Bosch and the Chief," running 36 seconds in length, was released. On February 3rd, a behind-the-scenes video, entitled "The Bone Lab," was released on YouTube, running 2:56 in length. On February 5th, a second behind-the-scenes video, entitled "Hollywood Station," was released, running 3:03 in length. The full pilot episode was subsequently released on February 6th; running 49:34, the episode was rated TV-MA due to "adult content," "adult language," and "graphic violence." On February 9th, another behind-the-scenes video, entitled "Titus Welliver and Scott Wilson," was released, running 2:12 in length, with another video, entitled "The Alley," being released on the 12th and running 3:18 in length. On February 16th, an interview titled "Michael and Titus" was released in four parts: "Preparation" (running 2:42), "It's Personal" (running 3:16), "Collaboration" (running 2:48), and "Passion" (running 2:02). An official Facebook page was created for the series on October 23rd. An official teaser trailer was later released on YouTube on November 10th. The release date of the complete first season – 13 February 2015 – was announced on 14 January 2015, along with the full reshot pilot episode (running 47:18), and a new trailer for the full first season. On 28 January 2015, Connelly and Welliver were interviewed by Tavis Smiley on the late-night PBS talk-show Tavis Smiley. On February 12th, the day before the series debuted, Connelly released a video concerning the first season entitled "Bosch: From Page to Screen" and running 3:11 in length. On 30 July 2015, "the first shot of Bosch season 2" was posted to Connelly's Facebook page, and consisted of a 15-second clip of Titus Welliver jogging. On August 13th, a 30-second video was posted to the Facebook page featuring musician "Grace Kelly playing her own composition, 'Blues for Harry Bosch'" during "a set at the Catalina Club in Hollywood" that was filmed for the second episode of the second season. On 11 January 2016, an official teaser trailer for Season Two, running 1:21, was released on YouTube. On 4 March 2016, eight interviews, conducted by Adam George at the Pacific Design Center, were uploaded to YouTube following a screening of the second season premier episode. Interviewees included Titus Welliver, Jamie Hector, Lance Reddick, Sarah Clarke, Madison Lintz, Emilia Zoryan, Michael Connelly, and Henrik Bastin. Cast * Titus Welliver as Harry Bosch * Jamie Hector as Jerry Edgar * Amy Aquino as Grace Billets * Lance Reddick as Irvin Irving * Annie Wersching as Julia Brasher * and Jason Gedrick as Raynard Waits For a complete cast listing, see Bosch/Cast. Episodes Pilot Season 1 Season 2 Behind-the-Scenes Podcast In March of 2015, a series of six free behind-the-scenes podcasts were made available through Audible.com. Season 1 Reviews The first season has received 56,386 five-star reviews out of 77,475 reviews with an average rating of 4.6 out of 5 at Amazon.com. The first season has received a 72% "fresh" rating out of 18 reviews on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer, while earning an 87% Audience Score out of 102 user ratings with an average rating of 4.3-out-of-5. It also received a 71 metascore out of 17 critic reviews and a 7.6 user score out of 41 user reviews on metacritic. * "Amazon's 'Bosch' pilot captures Michael Connelly's iconic detective," Colette Bancroft, Tampa Bay Times, 6 February 2014 * "TV Series "Bosch" Is the Harry Readers Have Been Waiting For," Oline Cogdil, Mystery Scene Magazine, 4 February 2015 * "TV Review: Amazon’s ‘Bosch’," Brian Lowry, Variety, 4 February 2015 * "Will Amazon's Bosch be the next streaming sensation?" Bruce Fretts, Digital Spy, 6 February 2015 * "Like Cinderella at the Ball," J. Kingston Pierce, The Rap Sheet, 8 February 2015 * "http://www.crimefictionlover.com/2015/02/bosch-previewed-harry-on-the-small-screen/ Bosch previewed: Harry on the small screen]," DeathBecomesHer, Crime Fiction Lover, 8 February 2015 * "Bosch, Amazon Prime Instant Video, with Titus Welliver," Robin Jarossi, Crime Time Preview, 8 February 2015 * "Amazon’s satisfying 'Bosch’ adds to plate of original content," David Wiegand, SFGate 9 February 2015 * "‘Bosch,’ Amazon Prime’s New Crime Series," Neil Genzlinger, The New York Times, 12 February 2015 * "Amazon’s Damn Good Hourlong Cop Drama," Dominic Patten, Deadline, 12 February 2015 * "With 'Bosch,' Amazon gambles on drama series," Christian Duchateau, CNN, 12 February 2015 * "'The Slap' is too arty, but 'Bosch' is tough enough," David Hiltbrand, Philly.com, 12 February 2015 * "Amazon’s Bosch brings a beloved pulp hero to the screen," Noel Murray, The A.V. Club, 13 February 2015 * "Bosch: Amazon series like a throwback," David Wiegand, The Columbus Dispatch, 13 February 2015 * "Bosch, Amazon Prime, review: 'solid, compelling, and slick'," Jonathan McAloon, The Telegraph, 13 February 2015 * "In Amazon’s Bosch L.A. Finally Looks Real," Mark Sitko, Los Angeles Magazine, 13 February 2015 * "Amazon Debuts ‘Bosch’, Its First Hour-Long Series," Sam Gutelle, Tube Filter, 13 February 2015 * "Bosch isn’t great TV, but that’s why it might be the hit Amazon desperately needs," Todd VanDerWerff, Vox, 16 February 2015 References * Official Facebook page and Official Twitter page * "Michael Connelly Sues Paramount Over Stalled ‘Bosch’," Josh Dickey, TheWrap, 22 March 2010 * "Author Michael Connelly vs Paramount: How Harry Bosch Was Rescued From Hollywood Development Hell," the Deadline Team, Deadline, 17 December 2010 * "Michael Connelly Partners Up To Pitch His Harry Bosch Books As TV Series," Diane Haithman, Deadline Hollywood, 9 July 2012 * "Michael Connelly talks about 20 years of writing crime fiction," Jeff Baker, OregonLive, 24 Nov 2012 * "Michael Connelly: Pleasing Multitudes of Readers, Moviegoers and Soon TV Viewers," Ellen Sterling, The Huffington Post, 20 December 2012 * "Prime Instant Video Greenlights First-Ever Drama Pilots," Press release by Amazon.com, 31 October 2013 * Michael Connelly's website, 31 October 2013 * "Michael's Daily On-Set Journal," started 4 November 2013 * Bosch at IMDb, updated 11 November 2013 * "Amazon to Order Four Series Including Drama From ‘X-Files’ Creator," Andrew Wallenstein, Variety, 11 March 2014 * "Amazon greenlights 'Bosch,' 'The After,' more; renews 'Alpha House'," Greg Braxton, Los Angeles Times, 31 March 2014 * "Michael Connelly brings Harry Bosch to the small screen," Peter Larson, Los Angeles Register, 27 October 2014 * "'Bosch' series gets second season shortly after Amazon Prime premiere," Greg Braxton, Los Angeles Times, 18 March 2015 * "Bosch Renewed for Season 2," Kimberly Roots, TVLine, 18 March 2015 * "Bosch Renewed for Season 2," Matt Fowler, IGN, 18 March 2015 * "How ‘Bosch’ creator Michael Connelly turned his bestsellers into a TV series," Neely Tucker, Washington Post, 19 March 2015 * "Madison Lintz Upped To Regular On ‘Bosch'; Dre Davis Joins ‘Pretty Little Liars’," Denise Petski, Deadline, 25 March 2015 * "67th Emmy Awards Nominees and Winners," Television Academy, 16 July 2015 * "Brent Sexton Joins ‘Bosch’, Ben Koldyke In ‘Masters Of Sex’," Denise Petski, Deadline, 28 July 2015 * "Jeri Ryan Joins Amazon’s ‘Bosch'; Hugh Dancy In Hulu’s ‘The Way’," Denise Petski, Deadline, 5 August 2015 * "Erika Alexander Joins ‘Bosch'; Malcolm Mays In ‘Snowfall’ Pilot," Denise Petski, Deadline, 5 August 2015 * Category:Harry Bosch's appearances Category:Jerry Edgar's appearances Category:Irvin Irving's appearances Category:Harvey Pounds's appearances